Tufting attachment



June 2', 1942. J, R, EAR 2,285,021

TUFTING ATTACHMENT Filed Feb. 19, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 2, 1942 .1. R. EARP 2,285,021

TUFTING ATTACHMENT Filed Feb. 19, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l l l I lllll 1 Illlllllll Patented June 2, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TUFTING ATTACHMENT Jehue Russell Earp, Chattanooga, Tenn.

Application February 19, 1940, Serial No. 319,658

Claims.

This invention relates to tufting attachments for sewing machines.

One object of the invention is to provide a tufting attachment for sewing machines, having improved means for causing the yarn to be cut in such a manner as to assure perfect uniformity in the height of the threads forming the tuft.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a tufting attachment having improved means at the looper arm forv supporting the needle against lateral deflection.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a tufting device comprising improved means at the presser foot of the sewing machine for guiding the yarn so that the needle shall not accidentally pass through the loop thereof.

Another object of the invention is to furnish a tufting attachment having improved means for mounting the oscillatory yarn cutting blade to assure precision and a close fit without material friction and to permit easy replacement and adjustment of the blade.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a tufting attachment for a sewing machine having a lower shaft comprising improvedmeans having a shaft mounted support carrying a looper arm and a pivotal blade which is linked to a fixed point so that oscillation of the support by said shaft causes complete operation of the attachment in course of continuous working of the sewing machine.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the specification proceeds.

With the aforesaid objects in view, the invention consists in the novel combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described in their preferred embodiments, pointed out in the subjoined claims, and illustrated in the annexed drawings, wherein like parts are designated by the same reference characters throughout the several views.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation with parts in section showing a device embodying the invention, with the looper arm approaching the yarn engaging position.

Fig. 2 is a view in elevation showing the invention with the looper arm advanced and the pressed bar means 35.

Fig. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the broken line 1-'| of Fig. 1.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged plan view of a blade according to the invention.

Figs. 9 and 10 are enlarged sectional views taken on lines 99 and Hll0 respectively of Fig. 1.

Fig. 11 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the device showing the yarn guide means controlling the yarn to prevent the needle from accidentally passing through the loop thereof.

Figs. 12 and 13 are enlarged fragmentary sectional plan views showing successively the relative positions of the needle and looper arm.

Fig. 14 is a view in elevation with parts in section showing details of the drive mechanism.

The advantages of the invention as here outlined are best realized when all of its features and instrumentalities are combined in one and the same structure, but, useful devices may be i produced embodying less than the whole.

. fore, are submitigd merely as showing the preferred exemplification of the invention.

Referring in detail to the drawings, I5 denotes a device embodying the invention. The same may include a sewing machine table 16, of which only a portion is shown. This table is formed with an opening ll closed by a removable plate l8 having an opening for the oscillatory feedplate I9. Movement of the latter is caused by any mechanism which may include a crank shaft 20, see Fig. 14, actuating a connecting rod 2| to cause oscillation of a bell crank lever about an axis at 23. Said lever may have a forked arm 24 engaging a follower pin 25 of an arm 26 that is fixed to a shaft 21, see Fig. 1, to cause a rocking motion of the latter about a fixed axis.

Such movement is synchronized with the reciprocation of a needle 28 which may have a groove at one side at 29 and an eye at its lower end at 30. Cooperating with the cloth feeder I9 is a presser foot 3| forked to provide a long and short arm 32, 33, see Fig. 9, and being pivotally mounted at 34 on an adjustable vertically movable spring As thus far described, the construction is conventional.

The invention includes a tufting attachment comprising a support or collar 36 mounted on the shaft 21 and afiixed thereto as by a set screw 31. Mounted on the collar 35 is a looper arm 38 which may be integrally connected thereto at one end as at 39. At its opposite free end, the looper arm may have a reversely bent or hooked finger 40. Formed along said looper arm is a slot or opening 4!, which leads into a chamber or opening 42 at the fixed end of the looper arm, the portion 39 being suitably enlarged forthis purpose. Desirably the chamber 42 extends wholly through the part 39 so that yarn fuzz and the like may be readily removed therefrom.

Formed on the support 36 is a hub 43 adapted to engage a threaded screw 44. The latter may be provided with an enlarged annular shoulder 45 surmounted by an axial head. 45. Journaled on the shoulder 45 and retained by the head 46 is an arm or carrier 41 having for this purpose a bearing part 48, and being undercut at 49 to receive the screw head 45. With the shoulder 45 seated tightly against the hub 43, the arrangement is such that just the right clearance is maintained for free oscillation of the carrier 4?, and binding cannot be caused by excessive tightening of the screw 44.

For receiving a blade 55, the carrier 41 may have a seat 5i adapted to receive the blade so that it overlies the screw head 45, with the blade retained along its edges by marginal guides 52, 53, of which the former may be partially curved to afford clearance for the screw head, as shown in Fig. 3. Overlying the blade to is a clamp element or guard 54 fitted between the lips 52, 53, and secured to the carrier by a screw 55 passing through a holein the clamp plate 54 and through an open ended slot 55 at that edge of the blade which is opposite to the cutting edge 51. The screw 55 is threaded into the carrier to thus connect the blade and clam plate to the carrier.

Desirably the blade 55 is formed with inclined ends 58 for clearance in engagement with the looper arm and to permit reversal of the blade so that either end portion of the cutting edge may be used for the yarn cutting operation. Should an end portion of the blade become broken, it may be ground down to again obtain the general shape of the blade shown in Fig. 8. In that case the blade may be advanced along its carrier by placing the screw 55 at 59, as shown in Fig. 4, there being an extra hole through the clamp plate and a threaded hole in the carrier 41 at 59 for this purpose. When thus located, the screw 55 is intended to pass through the slot 56 of the blade. It will be noted that the blade is such that certain types of razor blades are well adapted to be used in my attachment. It will also be perceived that the carrier 41 and the clamp plate 54 may be of any suitableshape or construction so as to leave one end of the blade projecting to enter and pass along and partially through the slot 4! of the looper arm as shown in Fig. 2, with the cutting edge closely approaching the chamber 42, so that yarn'fuzz resulting from the cutting shall be pushed into the said chamber.

An important factor in the invention is the construction of the looper arm 38 which possesses a number of significant characteristics resulting in corresponding advantages and which are correlated to produce a substantially improved operation of the tufting attachment. As clearly seen in Figs. 4 and 5, the looper arm 33 is substantially straight throughout that portion thereof which is formed with the slot 4! for the passage of the blade 55. Beyond this slot, the looper arm 33 is provided with a free ended portion 68 of substantial length and which is bowed laterally from the plane of the straight portion thereof, toward the head or support 36. Differently stated, the straight portion of the arm 38 is so related that the plane of the needle 25, with the slot 4! thereof lies in a vertical plane passing through the center of the needle 28 and being at right angles to the aXis of oscillation of the support 36. From this plane, the free ended portion of the looper arm is deflected laterally and preferably toward the feeding means [9 for the cloth that is being tufted. The purpose of this arrangement is to permit the portion 38 to pass laterally of the needle so as n er nd e gage in a' yarn loop which is projected into the path of the looper arm when the needle is in lowered position as shown in Fig. 1. This lateral deflection or offset of the part 68 is in general sufficient to afford adequate clearance with respect to the needle. The significant feature of this arrangement is that in this manner the slot 4! and hence the blade 58 are adapted to lie in the plane of the needle for the purpose of centrally severing the yarn loops. This permits the advantage that all of the strands of the tufting shall be of exactly the same length, thus making for absolute uniformity in the appearance of the article produced. In other words, it had heretofore been the practise to construct the looper arm to lie wholly in a plane laterally to the needle with the result that the blade and its slot were necessarily similarly offset, and hence the blade cut the yarn loops off center, and sometimes at varying points from center, so that the length of the yarn strands composing the tufts vary sufficiently to produce a quite irregular appearance upon the eye of the careful observer. In some instances, the yarn would be sliced angularly so that the strands of each yarn would be of different lengths, the appearance being thus further rendered irregular; and in operation, varying stresses would be produced in yarn tension and also a substantially greater amount of fuzz which would become objectionable in a factory and part of .which might find imbedment Within the tufts so that the article produced was not as clean as it ought to be. However, with the present invention, the yarn is severed clean and square and the cutting action is more rapid and is wholly satisfactory even if the sharpness of the blade should slightly diminish.

A second characteristic of the looper arm 38 is that its extreme end portion 69, at the place where the hook 40 is formed, approaches into extremely close lateral proximity to the needle 23 or makes substantial contact with the needle as it passes the latter. It is immaterial whether the hook 40 itself does or does not so approach the needle. The important thing is that some portion of the looper arm at the free end thereof is so related to the needle for the purpose of affording lateral support for the needle and for preventing or reducing possible lateral deflection of the needle, this being an effect which I have observed in actual practise, although the reasons for such deflection are not wholly clear to me. Apparently it is immaterial whether the needle deflects or tends to deflect in the opposite direction, that is, away from the looper arm. It is also important that by this arrangement, the tip or portion 69 of the looper arm is assured of reliably entering into the yarn loop and that any possibility of the yarn loop shifting to the outside of the looper arm or being deflected by the latter is obviated. Nevertheless, as soon as the tip 69 passes the needle, the bowed portion affords adequate clearance with respect to the needle so that further contact is impossible, and of course, when the straight portion of. the arm 38 approaches the needle, the latter has become elevated so as to wholly clear the looper arm.

Another advantage of my looper arm 38 is that afforded by the contour of the inner face thereof denoted by 10. This face or edge of the looper arm is eccentric with respect to the center of the attachment, being the center of the shaft 21. In other words, the face 70 is spaced further from said axis at the tip 69 than it is adjacent to the bracket arm 39, the looper arm being uniformly curved so that it causes a gradual increase in tension upon the yarn as the looper arm passes through the yarn loop. Thus the maximum tension is attained when the looper arm is in the position shown in Fig. 2, with the blade cutting the yarn. However, when the looper arm is being retracted back to the position shown in Fig. 1, the tension of such yarn loops as are still uncut diminishes, to reduce frictional engagement and avoid unnecessary tensioning and straining of such yarns, so that repeated tensioning may not change the size of the loop and hence cause irregularity in the size of the strands that constitute the tuft.

It will be perceived that the several features of construction of the looper arm above described are so co-ordinated as to be adapted to be embodied in a looper arm of very simple construction, and which may be produced as a one piece casting with all of the features combined to produce a co-ordinated superior tufting action at high speed.

Associated with the looper arm is the square stop face 76 which equalizes the yarn and holds it even for cutting by the blade, avoiding possible breakage of the looper arm.

In order to prevent the yarn loop from accidentally slipping into the path of the needle when the latter is in elevated position and is approaching the cloth feeder Hi, I provide an improved yarn deflecting means associated with the needle and mounted in operative proximity thereto in any suitable manner, preferably upon the presser foot 31 as, for instance, on the arm 33 thereof as clearly shown in Fig. 9. The means referred to may consist of a relatively thin strip of metal H, the essential portion of which is afforded by the head I2 affording a concave edge portion "I3 confronting the needle. This edge portion 73 is preferably deflected or curved in such a manner as to reduce friction with the yarn. This edge portion affords a guide which projects at "i l along one edge of the needle and which preferably lies along a side of the needle. The projection 14 may be somewhat closer to the needle than the rest of the head along the concave edge 13. The association with the needle is such that the device 12 confines the yarn 35 by engaging the latter below the fold 11 thereof. Such fold l? occurs naturally in the usual operation of a sewing machine, particularly when a relatively heavy yarn is carried, and as a result the yarn tends to swing to one side or another of the needle and sometimes produces a loop through which the needle passes, resulting in that the yarn becomes twisted around the needle or becomes otherwise so disposed as to produce a knot-like effect which interferes with the smooth and uniform operation of the tufting attachment.

The mode of operation of my invention will now be described. The yarn or cord, as the case may be, is first threaded through the needle 28 so that the yarn tends to follow along the groove 29 as shown in Fig. 11. The rock shaft 2! turns as the needle is being lowered to bring the tufting attachment to the position shown in Fig. 1, in which position the needle is substantially fully lowered with the looper arm 38 being wholly at one side of the needle. By reason of the arm 60 and the link 6|, the blade carrier 41 is in fully retracted position, being caused to oscillate to that position about the screw 46. From this initial position shown in Fig. 1, the shaft 21 rocks in a clockwise direction to advance the looper arm 38 correspondingly and to cause the tip 68 of said arm to enter the yarn loop on the rear side of the needle. As this occurs, the needle is beginning its upward travel. The relative position of the tip portion 69 and the needle 28 is now as shown in Fig. 12, the yarn loop being indicated by numerals 15. As the shaft 21 continues to turn, the concave portion 63 of the looper arm passes more fully into the yarn loop l5 as shown in Fig. 13, and there is now substantial' clearance between the needle and the looper arm. Further continued turning of the shaft 2'! finally brings the device to the position shown in Fig. 2 which represents the limit of motion. During this time, the screw 46 has been traveling toward the left with the result the link 5'! has been causing a turning movement of the blade 50 in a direction opposite to that of the shaft 27. The blade 58] has entered the slot 4| of the looper arm and has severed the yarn loop 15, and has also partially entered the chamber 42 in order to push into the latter any fuzz that may result from severing the yarn. The cutting of the yarn is aided not only by reason of the tension on the yarn loop 15 maintained by the looper arm and particularly by reason of the particular curvature of the face it! thereof, but also because the edge iii of the wall 39 serves to limit the movement of the loop. When the yarn is being severed, the slot M and the blade 5!] lie precisely in the plane of the needle 28 so that the yarn loop 15 is cut centrally in a precise manner. Now the shaft 2'! begins to rock in a reverse direction, under the actuation of suitable sewing machine mechanism including parts such as shown in Fig. 1 1, with the blade 56 swinging clockwise and the looper arm moving counter clockwise until the several parts assume a position substantially as shown in Fig. 3. If desired, the angle of motion of the shaft 27 might be reduced so that the looper arm will not move quite as far in either direction. It will be understood that the shaft 21 may be the bobbin shaft, from which the bobbin has been removed; and that the shaft may be connected to the cloth feeder l 9 to cause a feeding of the cloth toward the left in Fig. 1. While this motion is occurring, the needle is again moving downward. In normal operation of tufting attachments of this general type, a series of yarn loops l5 accumulate on the looper arm, and only the most advanced thereof, namely, the one nearest to the edge l6 of the support 39 is severed, the others being missed by the blade 58 byreason of the angular relation of the blade and looper arm. To prevent such reserve loops !5 from slipping off the looper arm, the hook if! is provided. By reason of such reservelofops '15, the yarn is prevented from being pulled out from the fabric by the needle. As the yarn loops 15 approach the hook dB, the eccentric curvature at m diminishes the tension so as to permit the yarn loops to easily move along the looper arm by reason of diminished tension and in order that frictional resistance shall not increase the tension and vary the length of the yarn loops, and also to allow for the lateral deflection of the curved portion 68 of the looper arm. In the downward travel of the needle 28,

a bend or coil is formed in the yarn as indicated at ll in Fig. 11. This bend or coil sometimes tends to get under the point of the needle in such a way that the yarn would twist around the needle or the point of the needle might tend to cut into the yarn itself. The yarn forming this bend or loop ll may be regarded as momentarily excess yarn and it tends to deflect frontward of the needle as the cloth travels rearward of the needle, causing the yarn at the point of its connection with the cloth to strike the bight of the forked presser foot, which thus tends to throw the yarn in the forward direction. Because of the proximity of the finger 33 of the presser foot to the needle, the bend or loop ll is so confined that it tends to deflect frontward and not merely laterally, under the action above stated. This is avoided by the presser foot head H, with the projection it thereof tending to maintain the yarn toward the back side of the needle and preventing the yarn from passing around toward that side of the needle which is nearest to the ends of the fingers 32, 33 of the presser foot. In operation, I have found that in this manner, the lateral deflection of the bend 1? in the yarn is so controlled and guided that any possibility of the needle incorrectly engaging the yarn is obviated. Since the yarn that is used in tufting is quite thick and cordlike in character, the possibility of the point of the needle striking through such yarn is an important factor to be considered in attaining uniform operation of the machine. This action, furthermore, tends to illustrate such undesired tendency of movement on the part of the yarn as may be caused by the fabric itself moving forward in the direction of the ends of the presser foot fingers 32 and 33. Now the attachment, as the shaft 21' continues its clockwise movement, again causes the looper arm 38 to approach and pass the needle, with the tip 69 of the looper arm avoiding any undesired deflection of the needle such as might be caused by the pressure or other action of the yarn itself.

If it be desired to replace the blade so, it is merely necessary to remove the screw 55 and then the guard plate 54 that is held thereby, whereupon the blade may be reversed so as to bring the opposite end of the cutting edge into position for cutting operation. If an end portion of the blade should break, it may be ground down according to the generally inclined form at 53 and the set screw 55 passed at 59 through the guard plate and the slot 56 of the blade. Certain types of razor blades may be readily cut down to the desired form for use in my attachment.

It will thus be appreciated that my invention may be very inexpensive in operation, and is very simple in construction, having a minimum of mechanism or moving parts and mainly utilizing actual sewing machine construction. The invention thus fulfills the objects hereinbefore stated, and is well adapted for practical use.

I claim:

1. In a tufting attachment for sewing machines having a needle, and mechanism for actuating the same including a rockable shaft under the cloth feeder of the machine, the combination with said needle and rockable shaft, of a head fixedly mounted on said shaft, an arcuate looper arm fixed on said head and adapted to engage in a yarn loop formed by the machine needle in its downwardly projected position, oscillatory means mounted on said head for swinging motion about a fixed point on the head, said oscillatory means comprising a blade for severing a yarn loop engaged by said looper arm, and a link having at one end a fixed pivot and having its other end pivotally connected to said oscillatory means, the latter, the link and the looper arm being so coordinated that the oscillatory means is actuated by the link to turn in a direction opposite to that of the looper arm upon turning movement of said shaft, with said looper arm and blade being spaced on opposite sides of the needle when the latter is lowered and the blade being spaced from the needle when the looper arm enters the yarn loop alongside of the needle, the blade and looper arm both moving into engagement with each other to cause the yarn loop to be out while the needle is moving upward.

2. In a tufting attachment for a reciprocating needle sewing machine having a rockable lower shaft, an oscillatory support adapted to be fixed- 15 mounted on said shaft, an arcuate looper arm fixedly connected to said support, oscillatory means comprising a cutter blade, means mounting said oscillatory means for movement about a fixed axis on the support, said oscillatory means having a laterally extending arm at an angle to said axis, and a single link directly connected at one end to the end of said arm, and means for affording a fixed pivotal axis to the other end of said link, whereby oscillation of said support causes simultaneous movement of the looper arm and blade toward and away from each other in opposite directions, and the blade being movable along the looper arm to cut a yarn loop engaged by the latter.

3. A tufting attachment for sewing machines comprising a head adapted to rock about a fixed axis, means mounted on said head for oscillation about a fixed axis thereon, comprising a blade, an arcuate looper arm fixedly mounted on said head, said looper arm having a main portion having a longitudinal slot, means for causing oscillation of the oscillatory means upon rocking movement of the head to cause the blade to move along the looper arm within the slot thereof, said looper arm having a free end portion offset from said main portion suificiently to pass laterally of a needle lying in the plane of the slot and blade to cause the blade to centrally out a yarn loop of the needle engaged by said offset portion of the looper arm and received thence by the main portion of the looper arm.

e. A tufting attachmentfor sewing machines comprising a head adapted to rock about a fixed axis, means mounted on said head for oscillation about a fixed axis thereon, comprising a blade, an arcuate looper arm fixedly mounted on said head, said looper arm having a main portion having a longitudinal slot, means for causing oscillation of the oscillatory means upon rocking movement of the head to cause the blade to move along the looper arm within the slot thereof, said looper arm having a free end portion offset from said main portion sufficiently to pass laterally of a needle lying in the plane of said slot and blade to cause the blade to centrally cut a yarn loop engaged by said offset portion of the looper arm and received thence by the main portion of the looper arm, and said arcuate looper arm having its concave edge eccentric to the axis of the head, so that the concave edge is spaced further from said head axis at the ofiset portion thereof than at the main portion of the looper arm to thus ease the tension of the yarn loop at the said offset portion.

5. A tufting attachment for sewing machines comprising a head adapted to rock about a fixed axis, means mounted on said head for oscillation about a fixed axis thereon, comprising a blade, an arcuate looper arm fixedly mounted on said head, said looper arm having a main portion having a longitudinal slot, means for causing oscillation of the oscillatory means upon rocking movement of the head to cause the blade to move along the looper arm within the slot thereof, said looper arm having a free end portion offset from said main portion sufficiently to pass laterally of a needle lying in the plane of said'slot and blade to cause the blade to centrally cut a yarn loop engaged by said offset portion of the looper arm and received thenceby the main portion of the looper arm, and said ofiset portion being concaved in the direction of olfset thereof so that the extreme free end of said offset portion approaches into substantial lateral contact with said needle to enter the yarn loop thereof, with the rest of said offset portion being spaced laterally of the needle for substantial clearance therewith. 6. A device having a sewing machine needle reciprocable along a fixed path, a rockable head having a fixed axis, an arcuate looper arm fixed on said head, oscillatory means mounted on said head for oscillation about a fixed axis thereon, comprising a blade, said looper arm having a main portion having a slot, said looper arm having a free ended portion offset from the main portion in the general direction of said axis of the head, means for mounting said head so that the slot of the looper arm lies in theplane of the needle at right angles to the axis of the head, means for causing rocking motion of the head and reciprocatory motion of the needle so that the latter passes laterally of the offset portion and then passes above the main portion of the looper arm when the said main portion moves into the path of the needle, and means cooperating with the rockable head to cause oscillation of the oscillatory means so that the blade is spaced from the needle when the-latter is laterally related to the offset portion and so that the blade engages in the slot of the looper arm when the latter is in the path of the needle.

7. A device according to claim 6 wherein said 7 offset portion is concaved toward the needle so that the extreme end thereof passes the needle in close proximity thereto and a substantial .part of the rest of the offset portion passes the needle in substantially spaced lateral relation to the needle.

8. The combination with the reciprocatory needle of a sewing machine, of a tufting attachment comprising an arcuate yarn looper arm oscillable so as to move to and fro relative to the path of said needle, including a main elongated portion having-a slot therealong for receiving a blade adapted to cut a yarn loop on said main portion, and an elongated free ended portion oiT- set laterally of the needle path to pass the needle and engage in a yarn loop carried by the needle, with said main portion being movable into the patlro'f the needle to cause the yarn loop to be accurately centrally cut.

9. A device including a tufting machine attachment for sewing machines comprising an oscillatory 'arcuate looper arm having an elongated main portion and. a laterally curved free ended elongated portion, said main portion having a longitudinal yarn cutter slot terminating sub stantially at said curved portion, and the latter being offset laterally from the main portion to clear a needle of the sewing machine into the path of which said main portion is movable with said curved portion affording a longitudinal concavity laterall facing the needle.

10. A device including a sewing machine reciprocatory needle, tending to form a lateral loop or bend in the yarn while the needle is moving downward, a tufting attachment for looping a cord-like yarn and for cutting the loops, a'forked presser foot having a finger disposed at the side of the needle at which said loop tends to form, said presser foot finger tending to deflect said yarn into the path of the needle, and means comprising a projection adjacent to said presser foot finger and deflecting said yarn loop laterally of the needle out of the path of the needle.

11. A device including a sewing machine reciprocatory needle, a tufting attachment having means for forming loops of a cord-like yarn and for cutting the loops, a forked presser foot, said yarn passing down one side of the needle adjacent tolone finger of the presser foot, and a member carried by the other finger of the presser foot so locatedthat the needle lies between the bight of the latter and the member, the member being closely adjacent to the needle and projecting laterally beyond its finger toward the other finger of the presser foot.

12. A device including a sewing machine reciprocator needle, a tufting attachment having so located that the needle lies between the bight of the latter and the member, the member being closely adjacent to the needle and projecting laterally beyond its finger toward the other finger of the presser foot, said member having a beveled face concaved toward the needle.

13. A- device having a reciprocatory needle, a forked presser foot therefor, "a tufting attachment having meansfor forming loops of a cordlike yarn and for cutting the loops, the needle having channel means for guiding a cord-like yarn along one side of the needle adjacent to one finger of the presser foot, and a plate on the other finger of the presser foot located so that the needle lies between said means and the bight of the presser foot, said means comprising a plate projecting from its finger toward the companion finger of the presser foot, said plate having an edge concaved toward the needle and being in substantially closer proximity to the needle than the fingers of the presser foot.

14. A device including a tufting attachment for sewing machines including a rockable head having a looper arm, a blade carrier, means rockably mounting said carrier on said head, said carrier having a seat and longitudinal guard lips therealong for receiving the blade, a cover plate adapted to overlie the blade, means removably connecting the cover plate to the carrier, one end of the blade projecting beyond the carrier and the blade being otherwise wholl enclosed between the plate and the carrier along the cutting edge off from the looper arm in course of oscillation V of the latter.

JEHUE RUSSELL EARP. 

